BREAD COOKING TEMPERATURE

This is not the recipe I used -- I used Beard on Bread -- but it's an okay recipe.



Cook's Magazine ANADAMA AMERICAN LOAF BREAD

Makes one 9-inch loaf. Published June 1, 1996.

This recipe uses a standing electric mixer; see related recipes for a food processor variation. You can hand-knead the dough, but we found it’s easy to add too much flour during this stage, resulting in a somewhat tougher loaf. If you don’t have bread flour, you can use all-purpose flour.


1/2cup water
1/4cup cornmeal
3 1/4cups bread flour , plus extra for work surface
2teaspoons table salt
3/4cup milk , warm (110 degrees)
1/3cup water , warm (110 degrees)
2tablespoons unsalted butter , melted
3tablespoons molasses
1package rapid-rise yeast (also called instant yeast)
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Bring 1/2 cup water to boil in small saucepan, slowly whisk in cornmeal. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens, about 1 minute.

2. Adjust oven rack to low position and heat oven to 200 degrees. Once oven temperature reaches 200 degrees, maintain heat 10 minutes, then turn off oven heat.

3. Mix cornmeal mixture, flour, and salt in bowl of standing mixer fitted with dough hook. Mix milk, warm water, butter, molasses, and yeast in 1-quart Pyrex liquid measuring cup. Turn machine to low and slowly add liquid. When dough comes together, increase speed to medium (setting number 4 on a KitchenAid mixer) and mix until dough is smooth and satiny, stopping machine two or three times to scrape dough from hook if necessary, about 10 minutes. Turn dough onto lightly floured work surface; knead to form smooth, round ball, about 15 seconds.

4. Place dough in very lightly oiled bowl, rubbing dough around bowl to lightly coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap; place in warm oven until dough doubles in size, 40 to 50 minutes.

5. Form dough into loaf by gently pressing the dough into a rectangle, one inch thick and no wider than the length of the loaf pan. Next, roll the dough firmly into a cylinder, pressing with your fingers to make sure the dough sticks to itself. Turn dough seam side up and pinch it closed. Place dough in greased 9-by-5-by-3-inch loaf pan and press gently so dough touches all four sides of pan.

6. Cover with plastic wrap; set aside in warm spot until dough almost doubles in size, 20 to 30 minutes. Heat oven to 350 degrees, placing empty loaf pan on bottom rack. Bring 2 cups water to boil.

7. Remove plastic wrap from loaf pan. Place pan in oven, immediately pouring heated water into empty loaf pan; close oven door. Bake until instant-read thermometer inserted at angle from short end just above pan rim into center of loaf reads 195 degrees, about 40 to 50 minutes. Remove bread from pan, transfer to a wire rack, and cool to room temperature. Slice and serve.

STEP-BY-STEP
How to Shape and Bake a Loaf


1. Gently press the dough into a rectangle, one inch thick and no wider than the length of the loaf pan.


2. Roll the dough firmly into a cylinder, pressing with your fingers to make sure the dough sticks to itself.


3. Turn the dough seam side up and pinch it closed.


4. Place dough in the pan and press it gently so it touches all four sides of the pan.


5. Place loaf pan in the oven, then immediately pour heated water into the empty loaf pan and close the oven door (if instructed by recipe).

For Christmas I was given Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything, where I found this recipe. You don't knead it or do much shaping, and is baked in a covered pot in the oven. Excellent work-to-tastiness ratio. Highly recommended.

___________________
Adapted from Jim Lahey, Sullivan Street Bakery
Time: About 1? hours plus 14 to 20 hours’ rising

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
? teaspoon instant yeast
1? teaspoons salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.

2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.

3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.

4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is browned. Cool on a rack.

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